Material Planning: Bedding, Linens, and Uniforms

7 Material Planning: Bedding, Linens, and Uniforms ■ Bedding his chapter is the fourth and final chapter devotedT to the examination of Sheets and Pillowcases Blankets material administration. In this chapter we explore bed- Bedspreads, Comforters, and Dust Ruffles ding, linens, and uniforms. These items are the highest Pillows annual cost items in hotel operational supply invento- Mattress Covers ries. Initial supplies required to support operations of a commercial hotel the size of the model hotel can well ex- ■ Bath and Table Linens ceed $200,000. Bath Linens Before deciding on the requirements for an initial Table Linens supply of bedding, linens, and uniforms, the professional housekeeper must have a thorough knowledge of the ■ Uniforms composition and construction of these items.The professional housekeeper must then establish purchase specifications for these items so that the purchased items com- plement the property rather than detract from it. The intention of this chapter is to acquaint the housekeeper with the range of materials and manufacturing methods used to construct these textiles. Bedding Bedding encompasses all materials used in the making of a bed. This includes sheets, pillowcases, blankets, pillows, bedspreads, dust ruffles, comforters, and mattress covers. Sheets and Pillowcases Many small (inexpensive) hotels change linen once a week or when the guest departs, whichever occurs first. For many years, people believed that a quality hotel 140 Bedding 141 CHAPTER OBJECTIVES After studying the chapter, students should be able to: 1. Generate purchase specifications for bedding, including sheets, pillows, mattress pads, blankets, and bedspreads, for a certain class of hotel. 2. Develop purchase criteria for table linens, including proper size, fabric content, and method of construction. 3. Generate standards of selection for employee uniforms. 4. Generate criteria for bath linens for different classes of hotels. should change guest linens daily, even when the guest manner are called muslin sheets. If the fibers are was staying for more than one night. combed, the fabric is much smoother and has a greater Today, environmentally responsible hotels leave that tensile strength. Sheets made from this process are choice up to the guest. called percale sheets. These linen reuse programs can save tremendous The threads running lengthwise through the sheet are amounts of water and energy and can also prevent the called the warp. The threads that run crosswise (hori- introduction of additional laundry chemicals into the zontally) are called the weft or filling.The most common environment. weave for sheets is called the plain weave. In this weave A hotel is not lowering its service standards when it the warp and weft threads are perpendicular to each gives a guest the option of reusing a towel or sleeping in other. the same sheets for a second night. Textiles are graded by the thread count and tensile strength. Housekeeping managers should specify a sheet Fabric Materials and Construction that has a thread count of at least a T-180. This means Although 100 percent cotton sheets are available, the that there are 180 threads in a one-inch-square piece of overwhelming majority of hotels use a cotton/polyester sheet. Ideally, there should be 94 threads in the warp and (Dacron) blend. A 50/50 Dacron/cotton blend is thought 86 in the weft. In any event, the numbers of warp and to provide the optimum qualities of the natural and the weft threads should be fairly close. The tensile strength synthetic fibers. is determined by the amount of weight it takes to tear a Cotton/polyester blends are more durable than 1Љϫ3Љ piece of fabric. straight cotton. After 100 launderings, cotton loses 35 to Fabrics that come directly from a loom are called gray 40 percent of its tensile strength. Cotton/polyester goods. This means that the fabric has not received a fin- blends lose 3 to 7 percent. Expected wear increases three ishing treatment and is unsuitable for most purposes. and one-half times with a blend. Finishing is an all-inclusive term that is applied to a Blends do not shrink as much as cotton. If cotton is number of treatments that can be administered to a tumbled dry, it will shrink from 5 to 8 percent. A blend freshly woven fabric. Finishing includes washing, bleach- will shrink from 0 to 3 percent. ing, and a process called mercerizing, in which the fabric Blends are more economical to launder. They will re- is treated with caustic soda. Mercerizing swells the cot- tain 15 to 50 percent less water than a full cotton sheet ton fibers, increasing the strength and luster of the cloth. after extraction. This feature means a faster drying time Fabric may also be sanforized. Sanforizing preshrinks for blends. the cloth to prevent it from shrinking more than 1 per- Blends, unfortunately, are not softer. In recent years, cent during regular laundering. Cotton/polyester sheets many high-end hotels have been touting their high- are normally chemically modified during manufacturing thread-count, all-cotton sheets. T-250 and T-300 all- to provide what is often called a “durable press” or “no- cotton sheets (see the following discussion of thread iron” effect. This fabric is smooth to begin with, stays count) have replaced satin and silk sheets as a mark of smooth after laundering, and stays smooth while in use. luxury in many a first-class hotel. There are even T-700 Some finishing treatments are patented processes. Egyptian cotton sheet sets selling for more than $1,000 a Sheets may be dyed, but white is the color choice for set. Some Ritz-Carltons advertise 300-thread-count most hotels. If sheets are to be dyed, the best process is sheets and feather beds in their rooms. to dye the threads in a vat before weaving, but most of The cotton fibers in a sheet can be either combed or the time the completed fabric is dyed. White sheets will carded before spinning. If the fibers are carded, the fab- often have a colored thread or colored piping in the ric is rough and dull looking. Sheets that are made in this sheet to indicate the sheet’s size for sorting.White sheets 142 Chapter 7 ■ Material Planning: Bedding, Linens, and Uniforms are preferred because they do not fade after laundering, pletely outfit the guestrooms of the hotel one time. Since nor do they require extra handling for sorting. one par is hardly enough to have an efficient operation, Sheets that have minor imperfections are called sec- a par number must be established to ensure adequate onds and are usually marked with an “S” or have the supply for smooth operations. (The GRA who has to manufacturer’s tag cut off. Most seconds are perfectly wait for the laundry to finish laundering linen before a acceptable in the majority of hotels. bed can be made hardly represents the efficient use of Sheets and pillowcases are shipped in case lots.A case costly personnel or shows proper guest service. In addi- may have from a dozen to 12 gross in its contents, de- tion, freshly laundered sheets should be allowed to pending on the size of an order and a manageable weight “rest” for 24 hours before being put back into service. per case. An example of how a linen case is marked is as This will ensure their durability.) follows: “2F/11S-81 ϫ 104.” This information is trans- Hotel properties having their own linen supply need 1 lated as follows: 2 dozen first-quality, 11 dozen second- to have 3 ⁄2 par linen on hand (1 par in the guestroom, quality, double sheets. 1 par soiled for tomorrow’s laundry work requirement, 1 par clean for tomorrow’s work in the guestrooms, and 1 Size ⁄2 par new in storage). Hotels that must send their linen There are two sheet measurements.The torn sheet size is out to be laundered require 1 additional par because of the size of the sheet before hemming. The finished sheet out-and-in transit time. has a top and bottom hem. Institutional sheets normally have a 2-inch hem on the top and on the bottom. This is Blankets done so that the sheet does not require extra handling when folding or making the bed. Also, since the sheet A blanket is an insulator; it keeps body heat in and cold can be reversed, it is hoped that both hems will wear air out. The best blanket is light in weight for comfort, evenly. but at the same time it should be a highly effective ther- In Table 7.1 recommended sheet sizes for each mat- mal insulator. Adding weight to a blanket does not nec- tress size are given in inches. essarily make it a better insulator. The way a blanket is Fitted sheets are never used in commercial applica- woven (how it traps the body heat) is what makes a blan- tions because they tear at their corners, they take up to ket warm. three times the space in storage, and they can be used only as bottom sheets. Standard sheets, however, are Fabric Materials and Construction more flexible, and larger standard sheets can be substi- Although wool blankets have extremely high heat re- tuted for smaller sheets. tention, they are much heavier than synthetic blankets. Synthetics such as polyester, acrylics, and nylon are the Par Levels preferred fabrics for commercial blanket construction. The term par refers to standard, specific, or normal lev- Another positive aspect of synthetic blankets is that els of stock. Linen pars are the standard levels of linen they can be laundered as well as dry-cleaned.

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